


Stay High

by criesmom



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Canon Compliant, First Kiss, Gay Awakening, Gen, M/M, adhd!hinata, gay little shouyou, kinda lol
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-14
Updated: 2020-07-22
Packaged: 2021-03-05 06:13:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,943
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25259770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/criesmom/pseuds/criesmom
Summary: Nothing could've prepared Hinata for the deep swooping of his stomach the first time he caught sight of Nishinoya YuuOr, Hinata Shouyou has his gay awakening in a humid high school gymnasium.
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou/Kozume Kenma, Hinata Shouyou/Nishinoya Yuu, relationships will be added as they appear because i want to keep the air of surprise
Comments: 10
Kudos: 137





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi omg SEND HELP i'm so nervous to post this!!!! it's my first time writing for haikyuu which has truly taken over my whole life recently ... oof  
> i'm hoping to give this story some twists and turns, although i have most of it planned out. i could tag the end game pairing to get more views but i'm trying something new teehee. i haven't written anything at all for like MONTHS so i'm trying a new style that honestly? i'm kinda loving ... ANYWAY please let me know if i am doing this right in the comments or on twitter or cc

Nothing could have prepared Hinata for the way his stomach swooped at the sight of the new team member.

Although, he wasn’t exactly new; just new to Hinata. And maybe that’s what struck him, caught him so far off guard that he blurted out the first thing that came to his head.

He had meant it to just be a thought, just a casual observation in his head, but well, Hinata had never had a good brain-to-mouth filter. He told himself it was the fact that everyone, (especially Tanaka), had been talking this other team member up so much. Everyone seemed to think he was the keystone to their team, and Hinata could see why. Something about the receive he’d just performed was breath taking, even if Hinata didn’t fully understand why. In his mind, from what everyone had said, he had conjured up this image of the famed Noya-san that was tall and strong and larger than life. The reality, however –

“He’s shorter than me!”

After that, it was all Hinata could do to play catch up. Nishinoya seemed to be outraged, causing Hinata to trip over his words as he apologized. A brief, awkward silence followed that made his skin crawl, and he opted for the only thing he could think to fill the gap and asked for his height.

Nishinoya, whose flushed cheeks didn’t escape Hinata’s observation, looked down as he scuffed the toe of a sneaker against the gymnasium floor. When he looked up, his face was full of determination. “Five-two!” His voice was strong, and it sent a shiver through Hinata that he couldn’t quite explain.

Hinata had never been good at controlling his emotions, especially ones that were too big for his body and too new to be named. He dragged the back of his hand across his eyes in hopes of willing his tears away, but it didn’t do much other than draw attention to them. Nishinoya yelled something in reply to whatever Hinata had managed to babble out, but he really wasn’t paying that close attention. Most of his brain power was being taken up by the sheer embarrassment of the situation.

Hinata let out a shallow sigh of relief when Nishinoya’s attention was diverted away from him and on to Kageyama, standing silently by his side. In the moments it allowed him, Hinata took a closer look at Nishinoya.

He was, obviously, shorter than Hinata in a way that made something settle in his belly, light and airy. And he was loud – louder than Tanaka, and even Hinata himself. How many times had Hinata been berated by his mother for yelling when he got too excited? Enough that he was hyper aware of it, anyway. But Nishinoya seemed to shout shamelessly about some game he’d played in middle school, with such passion and vigor that Hinata felt himself get invigorated, too. After giving himself a few extra breaths to process the things around him, (five things he could see, four he could hear, three he could smell…), Hinata brought himself back to the conversation.

“I really liked the girls’ uniform design,” Nishinoya said, his face like thunder, “like, a _lot_.”

The light fluttering in Hinata’s tummy turned acrid. He tried to think of something to say, but Nishinoya powered on.

“And the girls haven’t disappointed, either,” he said, with a glance to the gymnasium doors. “Plus the boys’ uniform is cool, too.”

He and Tanaka started talking about the merits of their school uniform, leaving Hinata and Kageyama to stare at them silently. Something about it itched at the soles of Hinata’s feet. Sure, it was normal for Kageyama to participate in conversations without saying a single word, but if Hinata went too long without talking, he felt like he might lose his mind. He slid his eyes to his left, looking up to see Kageyama was already looking down at him, seeming about as stunned as he felt himself.

Nishinoya cut himself off in favour of barreling towards the door, where Shimizu had entered, Tanaka following him closely. Shimizu herself didn’t look too pleased to see Nishinoya, but with his energy focused somewhere else, it gave Hinata a little breathing room. He shifted on his feet, elbow bumping gently against Kageyama’s in a welcome contact.

“He sure likes to make an entrance,” Sugawara said, moving to stand near Hinata along with Sawamura.

Sawamura chuckled. “He certainly doesn’t have an indoor voice.” Hinata watched as Nishinoya bounced around the gym, Shimizu’s face growing colder as he got nearer to her. “But when he plays,” Sawamura was interrupted by the sound of Shimizu’s palm meeting the skin of Nishinoya’s cheek, “he goes strangely quiet.”

There it was again, the sharp swooping feeling in Hinata’s gut, like he’d just dropped from the top of a rollercoaster, or fallen from a great height while half asleep. He stared after Nishinoya in wonder as the boy turned back to face his teammates.

“So,” he said, noticeably ignoring the stinging red handprint on his face, “where’s Asahi?”

Hinata’s stomach was starting to ache with all the swinging emotions rolling through it. He felt bile at the back of his throat and swallowed it down. Next to him, Sugawara cleared his throat delicately.

“He’s not back.”

The shift in Nishinoya’s mood rippled through the gymnasium, making the hair on the back of Hinata’s neck prickle. His brows came together and down in harsh lines, like an arrow pointing to the hard set of his lips, pressed together in rage. His fists balled up at his sides, and Hinata fought the urge to grip Kageyama’s sleeve and cower behind him.

“Spineless piece of shit!” he bellowed, turning on his heel and stomping towards the exit.

Tanaka made a move towards him, but stopped after a few paces. “Bro, don’t talk about the ace like that.”

Nishinoya looked over his shoulder, face still burning with fury. “Ace or not, he’s still a coward.”

Hinata became somewhat distracted, as was typical of him, at the mention of an ace. But it was short lived before Nishinoya powered on.

“Unless Asahi comes back, I’m out,” he said with finality, punctuating himself with the door slamming behind him.

It was an easy enough decision to make. The silence that followed, plus the fact that Hinata’s vocal cords hadn’t been used for a few minutes, made something ache within him. As overwhelming as Nishinoya was, Hinata knew instinctively that he needed to chase after him. And so, with the conversation of his teammates at his back, Hinata dashed out of the gymnasium, calling after Nishinoya the first thing that came to mind.

“Please teach me that receive!” He called, his chest heaving a bit, (which really Hinata didn’t know why, it wasn’t like he was out of breath, or as if he had ran that far to catch up to Nishinoya, who seemed to be sulking more than anything now that he was outside and away from prying eyes).

Nishinoya stopped in his tracks, shoulders lifting up towards his ears. Hinata swallowed. “You’re a libero, right? You’re like, the defense specialist, or something.” He took a few tentative steps closer to Nishinoya, the ground crunching beneath his feet.

Nishinoya yelled over his shoulder. “Oh what, because I’m short?”

Shame burned at Hinata’s cheeks as he tried to ignore the biting tone of Nishinoya’s voice. “No, I mean, I’m not really one to judge on height, am I?” he lifted a hand to rub at the back of his head as Nishinoya turned to face him, arms crossed. “But, you’re good at receives, right? Players who are good at defense play the libero position, right?”

Nishinoya’s face scrunched up a little more before relaxing, his lips pursing in a way that made Hinata’s heart jump a little. “So you _do_ get it.”

Hinata scrambled for something to get Nishinoya’s face to relax like that more. “Oh, and the captain said you’re our guardian deity!”

Something about that caused Nishinoya to flush, right to his ears. He unfolded his arms, the tips of his fingers fidgeting with the seams in his pants. He stammered the start of his reply before stringing together a sentence. “Well if he thinks a fancy nick name will get me to come back … he’s mistaken.” He looked up at Hinata, probably not meaning to do so through his lashes. “Did he really say that?”

Hinata couldn’t stop the broad grin he knew was making his cheeks ache. “Yeah!” He watched as the cogs turned in Nishinoya’s head, and he made some huffing sounds under his breath. “Um, I still really suck at digs and bumps and all that,” God dammit, why were his palms suddenly so sweaty, “but those are some of the most important things in the game.” Hinata willed Oikawa’s voice out of his head. “So, please can you teach me?” Sawamura’s words jangled in Hinata’s skull. “Uh, Nishinoya-senpai?”

Nishinoya’s face went blank, then the blushing got worse and he seemed to totter on his feet. Hinata was ready to put a hand out to steady him before Nishinoya collected himself, standing up taller and puffing out his chest.

He jabbed a thumb towards himself. “After practice, I’m going to treat you to an ice block.” Hinata’s stomach gave another almighty swoop. “After all, I _am_ your senpai!” He seemed to think for a moment. “Although, this doesn’t mean I’m coming back to the team. I’ll just teach you the basics, yanno?”

Watching Nishinoya at work had Hinata’s stomach swooping, rolling, burning, fluttering, and a whole bunch of other motions that he didn’t know how to describe. He was glad that neither Tsukishima nor Yamaguchi seemed to be able to understand Nishinoya, as it gave Hinata a good excuse to just stare at him slack-jawed. The way his muscles moved beneath his skin, the fluidity of his movements, the staunch determination on his face as he demonstrated his skills, all made Hinata’s chest feel tight.

But there was something nagging him, at the back of his mind, and every time it came to the front that acidic feeling occupied his gut again. When there was a lull in conversation, Hinata’s usual instinct to fill it stepped in.

“Hey, Nishinoya?” he waited for Nishinoya to look over to him, suddenly growing hot when his eyes were on him. “Uh, who’s Asahi?”

Somewhere off to the side, Tanaka hissed a warning, making Hinata nervous he’d made a wrong move, (curse his impulsivity), but then Nishinoya was talking over him.

“He’s our ace. Technically,” he added, almost as an afterthought. “Why do you ask?”

Shit. Why had he asked? “I want to be the ace, one day.” That worked. He ignored Kageyama’s grumbling and started on his usual spiel about watching the Little Giant playing at nationals when Nishinoya cut him off.

“You want to be the ace?” he looked Hinata up and down, doing something yet again to his stomach. “At your height?”

Hinata looked down, the back of his neck burning with shame. “I mean, yeah…”

When he looked up, Nishinoya was walking towards him, eyes sparkling. “Dude, that’s awesome!” he smacked a palm against Hinata’s shoulder, sending a current through him. “I can totally respect that! Man, aces are so cool, if liberos didn’t exist I’d probably wanna be one too.” He planted his hands on his hips. “Honestly, bro, you’d probably be better than the one we have now!”

Hinata was glad he could name this emotion; pride. “Yeah! Aces are so cool!”

Nishinoya looked thoughtful for a moment. “But you know, when the game’s really close and every point matters, it isn’t really the spikes that get the biggest gasps and all that.” Hinata cocked his head to the side, brow furrowed. Nishinoya smirked up at him. “Nah, it’s the impossible saves.

“In volleyball, height is everything right,” he continued with a roll of his eyes, pointedly ignoring Tsukishima and Yamaguchi next to him, (Hinata didn’t mind. He wasn’t paying attention to anyone else, either). “So libero is supposed to be the only position where shorter players have a chance, or whatever.” He blew up at the blond streak of hair hanging in his eyes, cheeks puffing out a little. “But you know, even if I was like, seven feet tall, I’d still play libero.” He waved a dismissive hand in the air. “So you can’t block or spike – whatever. That doesn’t matter if you can just keep the ball off the ground. And the best position to do that? It’s the libero.”

Hinata couldn’t pay attention to whatever Nishinoya said next, simply agreeing with him as he processed his words. _This_ was what Hinata was excited about, being on a team. Players like Nishinoya who were so passionate about their position that they couldn’t imagine playing anything else, (maybe Kageyama fell under that category, but he didn’t count seeing as he was so rude and annoying. Although it was a little cool, Hinata could admit).

“Anyway, what’s your specialty, Mister Future Ace?”

“Yeah.”

“What?”

“Oh, I mean, huh?”

Nishinoya didn’t seem to pay this slip up any mind. “Well, you suck at defense, so what _do_ you do successfully?”

Over his shoulder, Tanaka added; “Quickly.” Nishinoya tried to glare at him but just ended up giggling.

“Well, I’m supposed to be a,” Hinata swallowed down his embarrassment, “decoy.”

Nishinoya waited a beat, possibly for more. When Hinata’s throat was too dry to elaborate, Nishinoya filled the dead air. “What’s wrong with that?”

Hinata held out both hands, gesturing to Nishinoya in his entirety. “I mean, compared to our _guardian deity_ or like, _leader_ , or something it sounds kinda –”

“What, you all dejected over a name?” when Hinata just pursed his lips, Nishinoya scoffed. “Who cares about a name? Your job is just as important if it means someone else gets an easier hit because of you.”

It didn’t matter to Hinata that after that, Nishinoya started joking about not having seen him play. Or that Kageyama seemed all self-important, or that Tsukishima had said something that made Yamaguchi laugh behind his hand. That swooping feeling overcame Hinata once more and he felt he was getting dangerously close to figuring out what it meant.

He didn’t figure it out until he was lying in bed, staring up at his ceiling but only seeing the way Nishinoya’s tongue had lapped at his ice block, moving across his bottom lip before he tipped his head back in a laugh outside of the Sakanoshita Market. He felt his cheeks grow hot and pressed the backs of his fingers to them in an effort to cool them down. He looked across to the poster on his wall and sat up in bed.

“Shit.”

He had a crush.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [twitter](https://twitter.com/YUNlSHlNOYA) | [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/yuunishinoya)
> 
> PLEASE share your thoughts i'm seriously so nervous about posting this 😭 later chapters will be less um play by play adaptations of the manga i promise lol


	2. Chapter 2

Hinata found himself absently wishing he’d never realized he had this dumb crush on Nishinoya. Maybe then he could just dismiss the turmoil in his tummy like he did that first afternoon, before his brain caught up. Now, though, he was hyper aware of every time they came into contact, every time Nishinoya’s eyes fell on him, every time he made Nishinoya laugh. It didn’t even matter if Nishinoya was laughing at his expense – so long as he got to see the way Nishinoya’s eyes crinkled at the corners he figured it was okay.

Hinata guessed it was a crush, anyway. He’d never really had one before, unless the ones he’d had on girls he’d only spoken a maximum of five words to counted, but he didn’t think they did. Shimizu maybe counted, because he actually spent time with her, but it had been short lived. Anyway, Nishinoya had put a stop to all that.

Hinata actually _knew_ Nishinoya. They spent real time together, had real conversations. Hinata could recognize the sound of his footsteps outside the club room in the mornings, could tell his tone of voice apart; when he was actually confident and when he was using his confidence as a deflection. Hinata knew when he was laughing because he was shocked or if he was laughing because someone had made a mistake or if he was laughing because of some joke someone had told.

Maybe Hinata was paying too much attention. Maybe he should stop always listening for Nishinoya’s voice. Maybe he should stop watching Nishinoya’s mouth so intently when they got food at the Sakanoshita Mart after practice. Maybe he should just pay more attention to anything that _wasn’t_ Nishinoya.

Then there was the jealousy, god did Hinata _hate_ the jealousy. When Nishinoya was still trying to persuade Azumane to rejoin the team, every inspirational thing he said sent a dagger through Hinata’s chest. Every time he saved one of Azumane’s blocked spikes Hinata’s face burned with envy. No amount of attention from Nishinoya could make up for the fact that Azumane made his eyes sparkle in a way that Hinata just couldn’t. And Azumane was so _cool_ , in a way that Hinata could only hope to be. His spike was so powerful it could break through triple blocks, he was so tall and he had a _beard_. Hinata didn’t care to admit that he checked for whiskers every morning before he brushed his teeth, only to be bitterly disappointed. Not to mention the way he filled out his jersey.

Hinata pulled his own over his head, huffing at the way it hung off his shoulders. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Azumane tug the fabric of his shirt over his hips, and Hinata didn’t miss the way his hugged his body. He turned back to his locker, shoving his school shoes in and pulling out his sneakers.

Nishinoya was already in the gymnasium when he got downstairs. He and Tanaka were talking to Shimizu, who was acting as aloof as ever. Hinata narrowed his eyes at her. Maybe if he had been born a girl, maybe then Nishinoya might pay more attention to him. He was sure that if he was a girl, he’d pay attention to Nishinoya. As it was, Hinata was just a boy with a flat chest and a breaking voice who had yet to start his first growth spurt. He kicked at the ground a bit, his sneaker making a loud squeaking sound that drew the attention of some of the second years. He felt his face flush and tried to pass it off as a stretch. He didn’t think Kinoshita was convinced.

Hinata took a deep breath. His strategy thus far was simply to channel all of his teen angst into his practice; the interhigh tournament was just around the corner and he had a lot of improving to do, (although he would never admit it). He simply let it add force to his spikes, determination to his digs, focus to his … well not much could be said for Hinata’s focus but the point was that he tried.

And then Azumane had to go and give him a pep talk about his position as decoy that made Hinata feel so good about himself and what little resentment he had towards his upperclassman had no choice but to dissipate.

Aside from that, Hinata had never been very good at keeping secrets. Everyone knew everything about him as he had the inherent need to overshare. For the most part he could keep his mouth shut about this one in particular, though he didn’t quite know what the secret was. That he had a crush on Nishinoya? That he liked boys? That he was gay? He rolled onto his side, looking at his phone on his bedside table. Biting his lip, he reached for it, pulling up Kageyama’s contact details and slowly typing out a message.

**To: Bakageyama  
** **Subject: Noya-senpai  
** **Body:** what do you think about Nishinoya?

He flipped his phone around in his fingers, surprised when it buzzed with a reply so soon.

 **From: Bakageyama  
** **Subject: Re:Noya-senpai  
** **Body:** Who is this?

Hinata rolled his eyes.

 **To: Bakageyama  
** **Subject: Re:Noya-senpai  
** **Body:** hinata?!?!?!?! Didn’t u save my email???????

 **From: Bakageyama  
** **Subject: Re:Noya-senpai  
** **Body:** No. I have now. Noya is a good player. I’m glad he joined the team again. Why do you ask?

Hinata made a few drafts. _Because I think I might like him_ didn’t work. _I don’t know_ was too dismissive. _I like guys_ was too direct. And Hinata didn’t even know if that was accurate; as far as he was aware, it was only Nishinoya who had gained his interest. It was only Nishinoya who he thought about kissing. He shook his head. Maybe this was a bad idea. Kageyama was hopeless in any social situation.

 **To: Bakageyama  
** **Subject: Re:Noya-senpai  
** **Body:** no reason. toss to me lots tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Whatever response to that Kageyama had to give wasn’t important – Hinata knew he’d toss to him lots regardless. It was one of his only redeeming qualities.

Everyone else was asleep, as far as Hinata could tell. The room was full of the sounds of his teammates sleeping soundly. Or, in some cases, not so soundly. Hinata let out the breath he’d been half holding from the moment they had slipped into their futons, lined up along the floor. Very slowly, after glancing at Kageyama on his right side to make sure he was definitely asleep, Hinata turned to lie on his left side.

Okay, it had been a little funny when he’d thought Nishinoya was a ghost the first time he saw him with his hair down. He’d never realized how much height his hair added! With it hanging down in his eyes, wet and soft from his bath, he’d looked more than a little creepy. Once he’d processed that it was Nishinoya, however, things deteriorated. He had the feeling he’d never be able to get the image of Nishinoya, tired from practice and glowing clean, out of his head for a long time.

As it was at that moment, Nishinoya was fast asleep in the futon next to Hinata’s own. His hair was dry, but Hinata could tell that it was still soft, shining dully in the light from the street outside. He was lying on his stomach, head turned to the side to face Hinata. His cheek was squished a little against the pillow and Hinata fought the urge to reach out and pinch it. His left hand was curled in a loose fist next to his face and it was so endearingly sweet that Hinata had to squeeze his eyes shut for a moment. He took a steadying breath, and when he opened his eyes, Nishinoya’s were staring back at him.

Hinata was frozen in fear as Nishinoya blinked slowly at him. After a terrifying moment, Nishinoya smiled and rolled onto his side more, stretching both hands in front of him. His fingertips came dangerously close to Hinata’s face, and he found himself hoping Nishinoya would bump his nose.

When Nishinoya opened his mouth, even his whisper was croaky. “What time is it?”

Hinata shrugged the shoulder that wasn’t pressed against his futon. “I think everyone only just went to sleep.”

One of Nishinoya's hands disappeared beneath his blanket and Hinata heard a muffled scratching sound. “You should sleep, too.” He muffled his yawn with the pillow. “We need our decoy in top condition tomorrow, right bro?”

Hinata could do little but nod as Nishinoya’s eyes slid shut again.

“Mm, goodnight, Shouyou.”

When Hinata finally fell asleep, it was with Nishinoya’s soft face imprinted on his eyelids.

When Hinata opened his eyes, he had no idea where he was. He was starting to see why Sawamura got annoyed with his competitive streak. And what his mother’s _ADHD and You_ book was talking about with the whole thing about deleting information. Or maybe it was that he just didn’t process it in the first place, so it was never there to delete. Either way, Hinata was on a street he had never seen before, although he knew vaguely what area he was in. Further up the hill, if the retaining wall to his left was anything to go by.

He quickly scoped the area, looking for signs of his teammates, and instead caught sight of someone sitting on the curb opposite the retaining wall, hunched over their phone. Hinata looked closer at the person’s clothes, and his curiosity got the better of him when he didn’t recognize the uniform.

“Hey,” he called out before he could think it through, “whatcha doing?”

As he approached the person, they looked up. Hinata almost stopped dead in his tracks – he wasn’t expecting that. Wasn’t expecting the small, delicate, expressionless face that peered up at him from behind his hair as it hung in his face. Hinata let out a soft _whoa_ that he hoped the other boy couldn’t hear over the crunch of gravel.

“Uh, being lost, I guess.” He quickly looked back down at his phone.

Hinata resisted the urge to lean a hand against the chain link fence. “So you’re not from around here?”

“Nope.”

It wasn’t silent; the boy’s phone was making various beeps and dings. But the air between them was still dead, and Hinata couldn’t stand that. He took a few steps forward, dropping down to crouch so his face was level with the boy’s phone.

“That any fun?”

He hummed, and for a terrifying moment, Hinata thought that was all the response he was going to get.

“It’s a good way to pass time, at least.”

Hinata looked around frantically, trying to do that thing he read about using your peripheral to stop tunnel vision. As his eyes rolled around in their sockets, they stopped on the boy’s bag.

“You play volleyball?!” Finally, something that Hinata could hold a decent conversation about.

The boy finally showed some expression, (shock and confusion, Hinata thought), as he looked to Hinata. “What?”

Hinata leapt to his feet, unable to contain his excitement as he pointed to the bag. “Your shoes, they’re for volleyball right?” Hinata bulldozed whatever the boy’s response was. “I’m on a team, too! I’m Hinata Shouyou!”

Hinata shifted his weight from foot to foot as the boy looked up at him, his face slowly draining of colour. “Kozume…”

“Is that your given name?” Hinata knew he was being intense, could hear his mother hissing at him, but he couldn’t stop himself.

“Oh, no. Kenma.”

“Kenma,” Hinata tested the name, liked the way it felt, “are you in high school?”

“Yeah.”

“Cool! I’m a first year.”

“I’m in second.”

All the blood in Hinata’s body rushed up to his cheeks and he ducked his head in effort to hide the colour. “Oh, sorry!”

Kenma seemed to understand what Hinata was apologizing for. When Hinata straightened, Kenma was rolling his eyes.

“It’s fine, I don’t really care about that age hierarchy or whatever.” His eyes slid away from Hinata. “It’s so forced.”

Hinata filed that away as something to overthink later that night to the sound of Nishinoya’s soft breaths. “Do you like volleyball?”

Kenma looked up, shaking his hair away from his face a little. “Not really. My friends do it and I kinda got caught up in it, though.”

Hinata tried to imagine doing something that he didn’t like by choice. He couldn’t. “Why do you do it then?”

Kenma shrugged. “They’d be upset if I quit, I think. Anyway it’s only for high school.”

“What position do you play?” Hinata asked, leaning his weight against the fence. He immediately regretted it but didn’t want to push away. He’d committed to it now.

“Setter.”

Hinata couldn’t help the laugh that left him. Kenma pressed his brows together and Hinata tried to hide his smile behind his hand. “Sorry, it’s just our setter is totally different from you. He’s all like,” Hinata did his best impression of Kageyama’s yelling, but it came out in a grimace and a growl. “Anyway, I’m a middle blocker.”

“Uh huh.” A corner of Kenma’s mouth tugged up.

“Yeah, weird right?” Hinata was probably talking too much. “Middle blockers are usually tall guys.”

Kenma’s mouth twitched before he looked back down at his phone, face hidden by his hair. “It’s not that weird. Setters are supposed to be geniuses, but I’m not that special.”

Why was Hinata’s heart beating so fast? He’d been standing still for a while now, he thought his cardio fitness was better than that. “Is your team any good?”

“We used to be, I guess. That’s what our coach says, anyway.” Hinata thought he could hear an edge to Kenma’s voice. When he looked at Hinata again over his shoulder, his face was brighter than it had been the rest of the conversation. “I think we’re pretty good.”

Hinata’s brain was playing catch up again. As he was starting to stumble over a reply, both of them looked to where a tall boy in the same uniform, (and with impossibly weirder hair), had called Kenma’s name.

“Ah,” Kenma said, as if it explained everything. When he pulled himself to stand, Hinata’s heart jumped at the fact they were the same height. “I gotta get going.” He took a few paces towards the other boy, then looked over his shoulder at Hinata and lifted a hand. “See you later, Shouyou.”

Hinata raised a hand himself, staring after them even after they had disappeared around a corner. Suddenly his brain clicked, and he turned on his heel, booking it back down the hill to try and find his team.

Hinata couldn’t stop thinking about Nishinoya in the bright orange jersey he’d been given earlier that day. The way it was tighter than the loose white shirts he’d been wearing in practices so far. The way it made him stand out in the crowd of other boys, drawing Hinata’s attention to him even more than it already was. Hinata was like a magpie; if he saw something bright and shining, he couldn’t help but be drawn to it. In this case, Nishinoya.

Maybe that’s why it took him until the line up, when he and Kenma were standing almost toe-to-toe, to realise just what was going on. He couldn’t believe his luck! He got to show the boy he’d met, and who had been hanging out in the back of his mind for the past few days, how great volleyball could really be!

Of course, that wasn’t entirely the case. It was maybe Hinata’s favourite game he’d ever played, (the same could be said after every game he’d played, though), but Kenma was as passive about their games than he had been about whatever it was he’d been doing on his phone. Something bubbled up in Hinata’s chest, and he tried his best to keep it down but it frothed up in his throat and boiled over.

“Next time,” he said, hands balled in fists at his sides, “we’ll make you play super hard and get super determined! But we’re going to win!” he didn’t really know what he was saying, but as it spilled out it seemed to make sense. “And then afterwards, you’ll say ‘it was really fun’ or ‘that was a hard loss’ or, or ‘we’ll get you next time’!” Hinata was out of breath again, why did that keep happening? “ _Anything_ other than it just being okay!”

When Hinata opened his eyes, which had somehow been squeezed shut, he was rewarded with something beautiful.

Kenma was smiling at him. A small thing, something coy and subdued. But it was a smile all the same, and Hinata’s heart sang.

“I’ll look forward to that.”

Hinata felt his chest puff with pride. He quickly deflated it, reaching into his bag for his phone. “Can I get your email? You’re just really cool! I’d like to talk to you again some time.”

Kenma raised a brow. “We can talk again at nationals.”

That made Hinata warm all over, but he shook his head. “I can’t wait that long. Trust me, I’m super impatient.” He shoved his phone at Kenma and waited for him to put in his information.

“There,” Kenma said, passing the phone gently back. “I’ll talk to you later, Shouyou.”

Hinata’s toes felt warm as he walked backwards towards the rest of his team. “Yeah, talk soon, Kenma!”

And he had meant it. That night, staring up at his ceiling, thinking of dark spikey hair and a wide stance, Hinata looked at his contacts for the first time since Kenma had added his details. _Pudding Head Kenma_. Hinata groaned as he remembered blurting out the comment earlier that day, without really thinking about what the consequences might be. He seriously needed to ask his mother about going on concerta or something, maybe then his life would be less embarrassing.

But the fact that Kenma had used it for his contact name meant that he didn’t find it offensive. Or at least, he thought it was kind of funny. Hinata smothered his smile in his palm.

**To: Pudding Head Kenma  
** **Subject: hi!!!!!!!!!!  
** **Body:** hey omg !!!!!!!! I don’t know if this is too soon bc I kno I said talk soon but this might be TOO soon so I hope it isn’t anyway I had so much fun today!!!!!!!!!! Your team is so good you were right!!!!!!! Oh btw this is Shouyou!!!!!! I have a question for u … if u don’t like vb (im still going to try change that!!!) what do you like doing? There’s gotta be something right?

He flicked through his manga, not really expecting a reply until tomorrow. His eyes were getting heavy anyway, so he reached over to flick off his bedside lamp just as his phone buzzed.

 **From: Pudding Head Kenma  
** **Subject: Re:hi!!!!!!!!!!  
** **Body:** I like games

It figured that Kenma wrote like he talked. Hinata flicked off the light and rolled onto his back, holding his phone above his head.

 **To: Pudding Head Kenma  
** **Subject: Re:hi!!!!!!!!!!  
** **Body:** like board games? Other sports games? Card games?

 **From: Pudding Head Kenma  
** **Subject: Re:hi!!!!!!!!!!  
** **Body:** Video games

Hinata beamed at his phone. This he could get on board with, a little at least. Natsu made him play Mario Karts with him on their DSes, and he’d played Super Smash Bros when he was younger. Plus his cousin had had an xbox when they were kids.

 **To: Pudding Head Kenma  
** **Subject: Re:hi!!!!!!!!!!  
** **Body:** that’s so cool!!!!! My little sister has a DS and she always makes me play mario karts with her!!!!!!! I used to love that spongebob game on the xbox too oh!!!!! And the simpsons hit and run!!!!!!!!!!!! What kinds of games do you like?

 **From: Pudding Head Kenma  
** **Subject: Re:hi!!!!!!!!!!  
** **Body:** All kinds, really. I especially like ones that need strategy, but obviously I’ve been playing Pokemon since I was little so that’s probably my favourite. Recently I’ve gotten really into Assassin’s Creed since the new game came out. But I’m also replaying Skyrim since it’s one of my favourites of all time. I used to play Mario too when I was little but I’m not really into it much anymore to be honest, but I’m sure playing Mario Karts with you one day would be cool

Hinata blinked at his phone. He tried to imagine Kenma saying this in person, but got stuck after five words. He didn’t realise he was capable of saying that much all in one go.

 **To: Pudding Head Kenma  
** **Subject: Re:hi!!!!!!!!!!  
** **Body:** omg I haven’t even heard of most of those :o maybe you can show me some time!!!!!!!!!!!!

 **From: Pudding Head Kenma  
** **Subject: Re:hi!!!!!!!!!!  
** **Body:** Yeah that would be cool. Do you have skype?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and another pairing enters the ring !! also i just want to say that each pairing that is added will be explored in some way rather than being like "oh yeah hinata has a brief crush on noya" that crush will actually be explored but i'm not telling how hehe ANYWAY i hope you guys liked this chapter !! i really liked writing the emails and that but let me know if the formatting is a bit wonky but i've never written emails in a fic lmfaoooo 
> 
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/YUNlSHlNOYA) | [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/yuunishinoya)


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